


Lessons Learned

by KatieNoctem



Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-25
Updated: 2017-08-25
Packaged: 2018-12-19 20:56:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11906061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KatieNoctem/pseuds/KatieNoctem
Summary: A Compass!Soulmates AU with Kraglin





	Lessons Learned

Kraglin tapped the map on his display, studying the digital rendition of the planets surface and the little white dot that signified his target. This wasn’t usually the kind of job the Ravager faction picked up, they were thrives not bounty hunters, but the coffers were getting real low lately and they’d been offered an awful lot of money. Yondu hadn’t been all to happy about it either, kidnapping a young woman because some asshole wanted yet another trophy wife got another brushed the lines of slavery a little too closely and everyone knew how Cap'n felt about slaves. But Yondu had stronger feelings about money than he had about kidnapping women, and 1 million credits weren’t nothing to sniff at. They could finally fix up the engines and have more than enough to enjoy themselves with after with that kind of money in their pockets. He eyed up the distance reading on the monitor and set the course for the jump point, leaning back in his chair and thinking about how he would spend his share. In his pocket the little compass that was supposed to lead him to his soulmate beeped cheerily. With an irritated grumble he ignored it, instead focusing on the job and the money. There was no time to be chasing after soulmates when he had a job to do.

He landed the craft in a expanse of dirt just outside the city limits, hidden from sight by a copse of trees just in case someone decided to go poking around. Everything was locked up anyway, with a couple little tricks of Kraglin’s own making to keep sticky fingers away from the console. He did the stealing, other people didn’t steal from him. Checking the craft one last time he nodded to himself and started to head towards the settlement, keeping a small data pad with the picture of the woman he’d been sent to collect in his hand. Map beeped every few moments, registering her movement through the town and making Kraglin’s job ten times easier. Granted the thing wasn’t totally accurate, but it did a damn good job of narrowing down the location. Much easier than hunting round a whole city with a picture. He stopped in a square, looking around. She was here somewhere.

 

-

 

You crouched in the shadows behind the tavern, rooting through your bag. Food supplies had run out yesterday, and begging hadn’t done you all that much good. You’d barely managed to buy something to drink, food was off the table. You had to have something in here you could sell… Somewhere inside the bag something let off a solitary beep. You pulled it out carefully, studying what was left of the soulmate compass you’d been given the day you were born. You’d managed to keep it safe your whole life, but the last few months on the run and desperate for money had seen you taking it apart piece by piece for scrap and the little money that could bring you. The display screen was gone, which rendered the actual compass part of the thing completely useless. But the body was there, which is what was beeping at you right now. You tried to remember what that meant. Didn’t beeping mean your soulmate was nearby? But that couldn’t be true, you were out in the middle of nowhere. You couldn’t even remember what this planet was called, you’d been hiding in a cargo bay for half your journey anyway. Maybe the thing was broken. You started to wonder if you could perhaps sell it, use whatever credits you could haggle for to buy food, maybe sneak your way into somewhere for the night, or another transport ship. You were too focused on the little piece of tech to hear the footsteps coming up behind you, completely oblivious to the approach until a voice behind you startled you out of your thoughts.  
“You’re harder to find than I thought.”  
You whirled, shrinking back against the wall as the skinny man towered over you.

 

-

Kraglin frowned down at the woman crouched below him, her hands still buried in her bag. He kept his gun hand low, trying not to startle her any more than he already had, although his finger rested on the trigger like any good Ravager prepared for battle. She didn’t look like much of a fighter, but he couldn’t see inside that bag and you never knew what someone would do in a panic. And damn did she look terrified. She stared up at him wide eyed and trembling. Kraglin could feel himself softening a little, shoulders relaxing and scowl dropping from his face as he watched her.  
“You’re gonna come with me. Got a man whose paying us a lot for-”  
He was interrupted by simultaneous beeping from his pocket and the little box in her hand. Kraglin stared down at the box, slowly pulling his compass out with his free hand. With trembling fingers he brought up the display, flinching slightly as a second mirrored beep echoed off the walls.  
“Well shit.” He mumbled. Cap'n was not going to be happy. At all.  
The girl shifted in front of him and acting on instinct Kraglin levelled his gun at her, glancing up from the Compass into a face now wet with frightened tears. Gods the girl was utterly terrified of him, maybe it would be better to send her off. Collect the money and use that to drown any feelings he had on the matter. But the tug in his heart told him otherwise, and he knew in that moment that he’d never be able to go through with the rest of this job. Although, he thought, that might not matter too much since Yondu was probably going to kill him. Or if Yondu didn’t the rest of the crew likely would when they realised he was losing them all their money and probably bringing a fight down on their heads in the process. He briefly considered just leaving her there and saying she escaped him, but that wouldn’t work out either. One of the others would just pick up the job and likely be less polite about it than he was being. This was all just too complicated.  
The sound of her voice pulled him out of his thoughts. “P… please… please don’t… don’t shoot me.” She stammered, voice broken with little half sobs.  
“Aint gonna kill you.” He sighed, pocketing the Compass again. “But yer coming with me.”  
He held out a hand to the girl, which only made her flinch back away from him again. He tried not to let his exasperation show as he waited with his hand out for the girl to take it. After several moments of the girl staring at the appendage like it was going to bite her Kraglin’s  patience finally ran out and he grabbed her arm, hauling her to her feet and dragging her after him towards the ship. The whole time he wished he had something to stop up his ears so he didn’t have to listened to her panicked whimpering, the sound hurt him somewhere on the inside.

-

You stayed curled in a corner of the cargo hold the whole flight back to the main ship. The man didn’t seem violent, and he hadn’;t tried to touch you, but he still frightened you. He kept talking about someone who offered him good money for you. That frightened you more than anything. You knew who he meant, or at least you thought you did, you had been promised to a man you didn’t like and who didn’t treat his wives well. But then there was the compass. Both of you had heard the beep. You knew he was your soulmate. Knew that meant you should be able to trust him, but he still kidnmapped you, still wanted to take you to this man… maybe he was just as bad. Everything was so messed up.

Back on the main ship, the Eclector you had learned, you sat and listened as the man who had taken you, the First Mate, and his Captain argued.  
“Cap'n, we got a problem.” Kraglin sighed, rubbing the back of his neck anxiously.  
The Captain, Yondu, a large blue man with jagged teeth, snarled at him. “We got her, we got coordinates, no problem.”  
With a slight grimace Kraglin pulled the Compass out of his pocket and handed it to the Captain. You watched as he studied the little screen, flinching away when he looked up as the device beeped. Between your feet the backpack also beeped and the Captain twisted his face into an irritated grimace, cursing under his breath.  
“We can’t…” Kraglin started, but the Captain cut him off with a purse of his lips.  
“We can and if she ain’t convinced me she can stay by the time we get there then we will. I aint reneged on a deal since Quill…”  
“But Cap'n!” Kraglin protested, all while the man continued to ignore him.  
Yondu gestured towards you with a thumb. “My word might not be considered worth nothin, but you gotta give me and the boys good reason to abandon all them credits. Better reason than a beeping box.” He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “She’s your problem. Ya got five days.”  
With thar he left, leaving you trembling and alone with Kraglin. Slowly, head lowered, he walked over to crouch in front of you. “You heard the Cap'n, we got five days to make you a Ravager. ”

-

Kraglin tried, he tried damn hard. He taught her how to fight, suprised at how quickly she adapted to the techniques. She was a decent fighter in training, excellent at dodging punches and sneaking in fast blows, and she could sneak into tight spaces almost silently.  But if anyone showed any aggression towards her she wilted, curling up into herself (sometimes literally) and no amount of training or stern words while his body curled around hers at night was going to push the fear out of her. He’d gotten attached when  said he wouldn’t, the pull of the soulmates bond too strong to resist, and now it was going to come back and bite him in the ass. Maybe she’d be better off with the man hod hired them. She wasn’t cut out as a Ravager, that much was clear, but the little information he had on their client suggested he wasn’t so good of a man either. He couldn’t even look at her as Yondu checked their credits and went to hand the girl over. He kept his eyes fixed on the floor as Yondu grunted in acknowledgement of payment going through, shutting his eyes tight against the threat of tears as he heard the man speak over the sound of skin gripping skin.  
“You are mine now petite.”  
Then there was the sound of a knife being unsheathed, a gasp and a crunch. Kraglin’s head shot up, eyes wide with fear. But she was still standing there, turned back to face the Ravagers as the man’s body dropped to the ground behind her.  
“Can I stay now?” She asked quietly, wide eyes staring up at Yondu.  
Yondu nodded at her, taking out the man’s startled guards with a whistle. “Well looky here, looks like we get the money and you get to keep the girl Kraglin.” He grinned.  
With a silent nod the girl walked towards Kraglin, stopping so close she was almost touching him. She lifted her hand, touching it gently to his face. “Thank you.” She whispered, watching confusion flicker through his eyes as she leant up, finally pressing her lips against his.  
“Back to the ship boys. We got some celebrating to do.” Yondu shouted, gesturing back towards the Quadrant they’d come down in. “And Kraglin’s going to finally get a leg over.” He muttered, shooting the soulmates a filthy grin.  
Kraglin flipped Yondu the bird, his fingers entangled in his soulmates as they walked back towards the ship.


End file.
